JorDone

Hello, it’s the weekend. This is The Weekender ☕

As the third vote on Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) went on, House Republicans got quieter and Democrats got rowdier. 

The contrast was already visually striking: the male-dominated Republican conference is a sea of black and navy blue, while the exponentially greater number of female Democrats bring pops of color to their side of the chamber. 

The vote was gaveled to a close and the tallies read: Jordan had lost, again, by even more than he had the first two times. House Republicans were again as rudderless as they were two weeks ago. 

As we chased members exiting the chamber, even the pro-Jordan contingent seemed resigned to his failure. 

They streamed into the humid basement soon after, following a mountain of pizza and jogging away from reporters below exposed pipes, where they voted to see if Jordan would remain their speaker designate. 

Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA), a never-Jordan, said afterwards that many more people felt free to vote against Jordan in private, when they wouldn’t be subjected to the threats that had deluged his more outspoken opposition. 

“The totals, I think, were surprising,” he said, clutching two pizza boxes (which he did not offer to the malnourished reporters). “It was overwhelming.”  

Jordan had been defeated a fourth time, 86 to 112. 

So House Republicans scattered for home, with the optimistic plan to regroup for a candidate forum on Monday and a conference vote on Tuesday. 

It seems…unlikely that a field already crowded with nearly 10 candidates will winnow that quickly, especially with members sprinting for home. The sheer numbers will make it difficult for any one person to amass a majority. And don’t overlook the ambition at play here: This power vacuum gives backbenchers the chance to spring to second in the line of succession. It’s an opportunity the ladder-climbers will be loath to give up.

These past two weeks have been an unmitigated disaster for House Republicans. Their embracing of an anti-leadership, anti-institution, anti-governing ethos has reached its natural conclusion in members blithely willing to shut down the House to extend their moment in the spotlight. 

Members seemed hopeful on Friday about a brighter tomorrow. But that was probably just the relief of temporary escape.

More on other news below. Let’s dig in. 

— Kate Riga

Cheese Pleas

It’s hard to overstate the strangeness of Ken Chesebro’s career trajectory. From Harvard Law, to assistant to liberal Constitutional law professor Larry Tribe, to elite appellate attorney, to crypto wealth, to the 2020 Trump campaign, to this Friday, when he took a plea deal to bring an end to his Fulton County case.

At this point, Chesebro’s role in the Trump campaign’s legal architecture for a coup is pretty well understood. But the overarching reason for Chesebro’s involved legal chicaneries gets missed. Had Trump succeeded in remaining in office, or in rendering the January 6 joint session of Congress somehow inconclusive, he would have absolutely needed a facade of legitimacy. It’s less legal than rhetorical: stealing the election could only seem legitimate if it had been shrouded in complicated arguments about the Electoral Count Act, the timeline of legitimate elector appointments, and the true shape of the Vice President’s authority on January 6.

It’s akin to how a con artist might pull out a seemingly well-educated, persuasive “friend” to cinch the deal. The content of what Chesebro was saying mattered less than the effect it created and the place it came from: one of outward legitimacy with a deep rot at the core.

— Josh Kovensky

Biden’s Biggest Climate Win Is In Danger

In case you missed it, TPM’s Kate Riga has launched a new podcast under the TPM banner called Belaboring The Point. Check out the first episode and an introduction to the series here. 

The second episode of the new series dropped this week. Kate chatted with Vox Senior Reporter Rebecca Leber about how the Inflation Reduction Act is faring a year after passage, and the threats that lie ahead as Republicans try to take back the White House.

Listen here or wherever you listen to your podcasts. 

— Nicole Lafond

Shockingly, we covered a few things other than the Speaker’s race at TPM this week. Here’s a sampling of some of my favs:

• Jackson: Supreme Court Does Not Endorse 5th Circuit’s ‘Extraordinary’ Interference In Louisiana Map Case
• Chesebro Reaches Plea Deal In Georgia RICO Case
• Failed Michigan GOP Guv Candidate Sentenced To Prison On Jan 6 Charges
• It’s A Threat! Judge Chutkan Explains Trump Gag Order
• George Santos’ Campaign Is Hemorrhaging Cash

— Nicole Lafond

“We’re in a very bad place right now, yes.”

That’s former Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) response after a reporter asked him if the Republican conference is broken. McCarthy’s comment came shortly after Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) failed to win the speaker’s gavel for a third time this week.

If you have been following our live coverage throughout the week or paying attention to anything we’ve written over the past year, it goes without saying that this is the understatement of the century.

— Emine Yücel